Removable bridgework attachment



Nov. 4 1924- l. STERN REMOVABLE BRIDGEWORK ATTACHMENT Jmvewfw/z v f z'dore i'e/"n C Patented Nov. 4, 1924.

UNl TED STATES ISIZDORE STERN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

REMOVABLE BRIDGEVIORK ATTACHMENT.

Application filed November 8, 1920. Serial No. 422,653.

TbaZZ'wh-omtit-mag} concern Be it known that I, ISIDORE STERN, a citizen" of the United States, residing at New York, inithe county of New York and State of New York, havei'nvented certain new and usefullmprovements in Removable BridgeworkAttachments, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to dentistry, and more particularly to improvements in attachments for use in connection With removable b ri'dge'work.

An object of this invention is to produce a" new and improved bridge Work attach ment'generallyused in the art of dentistry for" holding one or more bridge Work teeth in position between sound teeth acting as supports.

A rimary object is to produce certain improvements in' the attachment itself whereby said attachment may be adjusted from time to time to compensate for Wear so" as to make it tightly fit into sockets formed in the pointsof-su port.

lnpra'ct'ically all types of present day removable bridge work there is no adequate provision to adjustth e attachment so fit-will maintain its original firmsetting. My invention? overcomes this disadvantage, and provides the wearer with a" removable denture Which he himself may adjust and keep ti lit by using any suitable spreading tool.

he accompanyingdrawings form a part off this disclosure" and reference is made thereto, wherein:

Figure l illustrates an enlarged View of a removable bridge or tooth anchored betweenithe points of support'and incorporating this-improved: adj ustable" dental attachinenti Figure'Q" shows the three enlarged major projections orviews of the removable bridge Work attachment separate and apart from thebridge' Work or tooth it is adapted to support.

Figure 3'is a greatly enlarged view'showing the improved attachment with a spreader tool inserted therein, and in position to expand the attachment to make it fit moresnugly'into the supporting sockets.

F igure" 4: illustrates a cross'se'ctional view taken o'n1ine44 of Figure 3 to bring out the cross sectional shape of the spreader tool;

I Referringmore in detail to the drawings for "a: more comprehensive disclosure of the and'head of the attachment. bridge Work 12, with the' integral' attachinvention, there is shown a metal device constructed in accordance With the best principles of dental engineering, and best constructed of a comparatively hard homogeneous metal to resist wear, and possessing the quality of springiness and resistivity so that it will flex and yield slightly to bending and expanding forces; This device comprises a shank 7 made integral on" a Web 8. The outer edges ofthe' Web 8 are bent over and back to form Wings 9; and the device is so const'ructed as to assume a' T- shape construction With a hole thru the head orT-p'art.

The adjacent edges of the wings 9 are brought into close relationship soas to form a nearly uninterrupted plane surface; The opening is formed thru the head of the at tachment by virtue of the win s being slightly tapered from a thicker body Where the Wings join the Web outto a thin edge Where the Wings nearly meet. The opening through the Web istriangular' shaped Which imparts a taper to the Wings 9, the said Wings being in fact formed by'virtueof a split or opening made down through the thin part of the Wall formed by the triangular opening.

The attachment, comprising the shank 7 and head formation 8-9, is secured to a bridge or tooth 12 in any su'itablemanner. It is the usual practice to anchor two attachments to the bridge Work 12 assh'own in Figure l which is suh'icientto firml hold the bridge; in position'betvv'een the sound teeth acting assupports forthe bridge.

I In order to prepare points of support to hold the tooth 12'Within thespacebetween the sound teeth 14, it" is the usualpractice to anchor inlays 15 ithin the sound teeth as a basisof support forthe tooth or bridge 12; and a tube 16, Which forms a socket, is r embedded in each inlay Witha'n opening or slot in the tube and inlay to admit the shank When the ments 7, is placed in position between the two teeth 14, there is formed a permanent and substantial removable bridge tooth to fill the space between the sound teeth, thus providing a full set of teeth.

The advanta e of removable brid e Work 1 lies in the fact that the bridge may be so constructed and mounted in themouth that suihcient relative movement may take place between the bridge itself and the sound teeth, that the disadvantages of immovable and fixed bridge work is overcome; and furthermore the bridge may be removed to be cleaned to maintain the parts in a more sanitary condition than heretofore possible with the old style fixed bridge.

Referring particularly to Figure 3, there is shown a spreader tool having a long ta pering blade 18, made on a handle 19, the blade itself being made to fit the opening formed thruthe head 8-9. In other words, the blade 18 in cross section is the counterpart of the opening formed in the attachment.

The tool is grasped by the handle 19 and carefully thrust into the opening of the head to expand and open the wings to slightly spread them from the web. The blade 18 acting against wings 9 serves to expand and enlarge the head 8-9 of the device. When the bridge 12 is again replaced in between the teeth 14 it is found that it occupies a more firmly anchored connection with the points of support. The head of i the attachment may be expanded from time to time by using this tool as above described to make the bridge work fit tightly in position. I

A significant advantage of this dental at- .tachment lies in the fact that a skilled dental mechanic or a professional dentist is not necessarily required to make the adjustments. The wearer of the bridge work himself may make the necessary adjustments by carefully pushing and sliding the blade 18 forward into the head of the attachment, and the gradually tapered blade 18 will effectivelyopen out the wings 9 and thus expand the head tomake it tightly fit within the tubes or sockets 16. In fact, no specially 'c'ons'tructedtool is necessary to make the adjustment for a needle, or any other device sufliciently small and strong to enter the opening and spread the wings is sufficient.

The device is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and is characterized by the advantages named, without adding additional expense to the user and though 1 have shown one preferredform of construction, 1 do not limit myself thereto, but claim a right of protection as to obvious changes which come within the scope of my invention.

Having thus described the construction and merits of my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A denture -appliance applicable to bridge work where a socket is used as a support for the bridge, said appliance com prising a shank, a web formed on the shank, said web hlving a triangular shaped hole formed longitudinally therethrough which leaves tapering wing parts expandible by inserting an appropriate tool in the opening whereby the appliance is made to more snugly fit into the socket.

2. A denture appliance applicable to removable bridge work where a socket is used as a support for the bridge, said appliance comprising a member adapted to slide into the socket, said member having a hole formed therethrough in such a manner as to leave one wall uniform in thickness and another wall tapered toward the center, said tapered wall having a split or opening made therethrough which produces a pair of opposed tapered wing parts made on the member, said opposed tapered parts capable of being slightly expanded or bent outwardly which causes the member to more snugly fit with surface contact into the socket, and a shank made on the member by which the appliance is anchored to a dental bridge.

3. A denture attachment for removable bridge work comprising a socket, a shank by which the attachment is anchored to a bridge, a web made on the shank having a hole formed therethrough leaving an outer thin wall, said wall having a split or opening made from end to end thereof to form opposed wing parts integral with the web, said opposed wing parts capable of being uniformly expanded to thicken or make wider the web whereby it takes up for wear and fits more tightly into the socket with surface contact.

a. A denture attachment applicable to re movable bridge work where a socket is made in pier teeth to support a bridge, comprising a rectangular shaped member adapted to slide into a socket, a wing formed on opposite parallel edges of the rectangular shaped member to provide opposed wings which have their adjacent edges closely spaced and extending parallel to the vertical axis of the sockets, said wings being slightly expandible to improve the fit and anchoring capacity of the attachment in the socket, and a shank by which the attachment is fixed to the bridge.

5. A denture attachment applicable to removable bridge work where a socket is made in pier teeth to support a bridge, comprising a rectangular adapted to slide into the socket, a wing formed on the opposed parallel edges of the rectangular shaped member to provide two opposed wings which have their adjacent edges closely to the vertical axis of the sockets, said wings having their meeting edges extending centrally of and parallel to the web, said wings being slightly expandible 'to improve the fit and anchoring capacity of the attachment in the socket, and a shank by which the attachment is fixed to the bridge.

6. A denture attachment for removable bridgework where a socket is made in pier teeth as a support for the bridge, comprising a web, tapered pieces formed on the web and shaped member a spaced and extending parallel bent over to leave'an open space between the web and tapered pieces, the said web and tapered pieces having their front and back outer wall surfaces ranging in parallel planes, the aforesaid open space adapted to receive a tool to expand the tapering pieces in such a manner that the adjacent edges of the tapered pieces are moved further away from the web but remain parallel to said 10 web and parallel each to each.

7. A denture attachment for removable bridgework, comprising a head to fit' into a socket, and a shank by which the head is anchored to the bridge, said head embodying beveled wings bent over to form a triangular opening thru the head, said opening adapted to receive a tool to bend the bevel wings to increasethe size of the triangular opening.

In testimony whereof I hereunto set my hand and seal this 3rd day of November, 20

ISIDORE STERN. 1,. s.] 

